Butter-cutting machine.



. PATENTED JUNE 13,1905. N. MBNARD.

BUTTER CUTTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 1330.27, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

Liam 7%W/GW PATBNTED JUNE13, 1905.

N. MENARD. BUTTER CUTTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 27, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

[72 (/6 7a 7 jfoYawzWnard Patented June 13, 1905.

PATENT OEETQE.

NAPOLEON IWIENARD, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

BUTTER-CUTTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 792,339, dated June 13,1905.

Application filed December 27, 1904:. Serial No. 238,512.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, NAroLaoN l IENARD, a citizen of the United States,residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State ofCalifornia, have invented new and useful Improvements in Butter-CuttingMachines, of which the following is a specification.

In the manufacture of butter at creameries the same is put up into largecubes containing many pounds of butter. In retailing butter it isdesirable that these large cubes be cut up into small slabs which shallcontain a smaller quan tity-say a single pound of butteras the same ismore desirable when in that form; and it is the object of my inventionto provide a simple and eflicientmachine to divide the large bodies ofbutter into the smaller slabs or pieces. I accomplish this object by themachine described herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings,in which- Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of my machine,taken on the line 1 1 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a front elevation with partsbroken away and parts in section. Fig. 3 is a sectional plan taken onthe line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a sectional detail of a portion of themachine, showing it equipped with cutterknives. Figs. 5 and 6 aredetails of the shifting mechanism for moving the transverse cutter-wire.Fig. 7 is a detail of the cutterknives.

In the frame 8 is the horizontal table 9, upon which the butter (notshown) rests while it is being out into smaller-sized portions withparallel faces. At the forward end of the table are the side boards 10and 11,- which prevent any lateral displacement of the butter as it isbeing cut into smaller pieces and forms a guidway. of the same size, Iprovide an adjustingboard 12, which is hinged to the side board 10 byhinges 13, the free end of which may be moved by thumb-screw 14 to keepthe large cube of butter in firm contact with the side board 11, saidboard making the guideway ad' justable.

A follower 15 is provided with braces 16, which hold the followervertically upon the table. Near the center of this follower and As thelarge cubes are not always passing through the braces is a cross bar orrod 17, the ends of which project through slots in the side boards 10and 11, one of which slots 18 is shown in side board 10, the other sideboard being provided with a similar slot. To the ends of the cross-bar17 are secured flexible wires or cords 19 and 20, which pass overpulleys secured to the frame, one of which pulleys 21 is shown inFig. 1. These wires then pass over direction-changing pulleys, alsoaffixed to the frame, one of which, 22, is shown in dotted lines in Fig.1, there being a similar pulley on the other side for wire 20. Thesewires are then fastened to the ends of cross-bar 23, which cross-bar issecured to an arm 24, fastened to the operating-lever 25, which ishinged to the frame, at the rear end thereof, at 26, the free endprojecting to the front of the machine through guideway 27, formed bythe vertical bars 28 and 29. A vertical bar 30, acting with vertical bar29, forms a guideway 31, which guides lever 32, which lever is hinged tothe frame at one side of the lever 25 and adjacent thereto. Aconnecting-bar 33 is connected, by means of hinge 34, to thisoperating-lever. The upper end of this connecting-bar is connected byhinge 36 to the vertically-moving cutterframe 37, which frame carriesthe cutterwire 38, which makes the vertical cuts through the large cubeof butter, as hereinafter explained. To the upper end of this verticalcutter-frame is secured the retraction-spring 39, the other end of whichis secured to the stationary part of the frame of the machine.

Aflixed-to the front of the machine is bracket L0, which supports theshelf 41 for the reception of the small pieces of butter which are cutfrom the large cube, as hereinafter explained. A bracket 42 is alsosecured to the front of the machine in such manner as to provide apocket 13 for the reception of the stop-bar 44, as shown in Fig. 1, andwhose use will be explained hereinafter. This last bracket receives aloose shelf 45, which can be removed therefrom when desired. This shelfreceives the upper row of pieces of butter when the large cube is cutinto a double row of pieces, as hereinafter explained.

In the operation of my machine the large cube of butter (not shown)which it is desired to cut up into small pieces is placed upon the table(the follower being temporarily removed) and pushed between theguideways 10 and 11. The follower is then placed in the rear of thebutter and the wires are secured to the cross-bar. The stop-bar 4A isthen placed across the front of the machine to limit the movement of thebutter. The operator then places his foot upon the free end of lever 25,thereby causing the follower to bring the large cube of butter to thefront of the machine until the front end thereof rests against thestop-bar 44. In this forward movement the butter is pushed through thevertical cutting-wires 16, which are placed a sufficient distance apartto give the small piece of butter the desired height. A transverse orhorizontal cutting-wire 4C7 cuts the cube of butter horizontally, togive it the desired length, at the same time it is cut by the verticalwires, the wires 46 and -17 being secured to the stationary part of theframe. The operator then places his foot upon the lever, 32 and bringsthe cutter-frame downward until the wire 38 has passed through thebutter. He then takes his foot oil the lever, and spring 39 retracts theframe to its primary position, a stop 39 (shown in dotted lines)preventing any undue upward movement. The transverse horizontal wire 47passes through slots L8 in the side timbers and through frame 49, whichis provided with adjusting-lingers 50, by means of which the height ofthe hori- Zontal cutting-wire may be adjusted by moving it up or down inthe adjusting-frame, the tension being regulated by the screw 51 in thesame manner that the tension of piano- Wires are regulated. hen thebutter is very hard, the large cubes of butter are cut to the exactheight of a single row of small pieces of butter and the vertical andtransverse cutting-wires 46 and 5L7 are removed from the frame and thevertical cutting-wire 38 is removed from the movable cutting-frame, andin lieu thereof is secured to the movable frame the transverse bar 52,which carries a plurality of steel cutting-knives 53, in the ends ofwhich are secured cutting-wire 54s, as best shown in Fig. 7. The butteris then placed on the table and the front end thereof is brought incontact with stop-bar M, which is then removed. The operator then placeshis foot upon lever 32 and draws the movable cutter-frame downward,thereby forcing the knives 50 and the cutter-wire 54 to sever from theend of the large slab a .row of small pieces, each of which contains therequisite amount of butter, as the length of the knives 53 and theposition of the wires 54 in the ends thereof are so regulated that itcontains whatever quantity of butter it is desired that the small pieceshall contain, such small pieces usually containing one pound of butter.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secureby Letters Patent. is

1. A butter-cutting machine comprising a table; a guideway thereonhaving two vertical sides, one of which is adjustable toward the other;a follower in said guideway; means to move said follower toward thefront of the table to cut the butter; a plurality of verticalcutting-wires at the front of the table; a vertically-movable framemounted in the front end of the machine and movable across the guidcway;a transverse cutter-wire in said movable frame; and means to move saidframe.

2. A, butter-cutting machine comprising a table; an adjustable guidewaythereon; a follower in said guideway; means to move said follower; aplurality of vertical cutting-wires at the front of the machine; averticallymov able frame mounted in the front end of the machine andmovable across the guideway; a transverse cutter-wire in said movableframe; and means to move said frame.

3. A butter-cutting machine comprising a frame; a table secured to saidframe; side boards secured to said table; said side boards havinglongitudinal slots near the top thereof; a follower on said tablebetween said side boards; braces secured at the back of said follower; atransverse bar passing through said braces and through said slots;pulleys secured at the sides of the frame; cords secured to saidcross-bar and passing around said pulleys and having the ends thereofsecured to a crossbar; a lever pivoted in the lower portion of saidframe; an arm secured to said lever; a cross-bar secured to said arm,said cross-bar being engaged by said cords; a second lever pivotallymounted in the lower portion of said frame; a verticallymovable cutterframe mounted at the front portion of said machine; a link-bar pivotallyconnected thereto and to said last lever; a spring connected to saidframe and to the upper end of said stationary frame; a transversecutter-wire secured in said movable frame; stationary vertical andtransverse cutter-wires secured in said frame near the front end of thetable; brackets secured to said frame at the front end of said table;and shelves upon said brackets.

t. A butter-cutting machine comprising a frame; a table secured to saidframe; side boards secured to said table said side boards havinglongitudinal slots near the top thereof; an adjusting-board pivotallysecured at one of its ends to the rear end of one of said side boards; athumb-screw passing through the other end of said side board intocontact with the movable end of said adjustingboard whereby the positionthereof is adjusted; a follower on said table between said side boards;braces secured at the back of said follower; a transverse bar passingthrough said braces and through the slots in said side boards; a leverpivoted in the lower portion of said frame; an arm secured to saidlever; a cross-bar se- 10 frame and to the upper end of said stationaryframe; and means carried by said movable cutter-frame to cut butter uponsaid table.

In witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my namethis 19th day of December, 1904.

NAPOLEON MENARD.

Witnesses:

MARGARETE C. NIoKELEsoN, HENRY T. HAZARD.

